O Tannenbaum

O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,

How sturdy God hath made thee!

Thou bidd'st us all place faithfully

Our trust in God, unchangingly!

O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree,

How sturdy God hath made thee!

Joy is Blooming!

Missing our Dominic, but the joy of the season must go on!

For many years we have visited our local conservatory to see the Christmas trains.

We had fun attending an Advent celebration featuring art from Margaret's co-op art class.

St. Nick found us once again on his special feast day!

Fall Family Fun

Apple picking which lead to

apple pie, apple crisp and

a lot of batches of caramel dip.

The colors were gorgeous this year.

We planted a variety of bulbs.

It will be so fun this spring to see what comes up! 

Raking leaves is always fun especially when you have your own pile to play in for days.

Carving pumpkins was calm this year.

Everything is getting a little easier with older children.

Colleen adds so much joy to our family!

The weather was perfect for Trick-or-Treating.

Although we were missing three of our gang, our cousins made the night extra festive.

Gone Fishing

 The fishing bug has hit our children.

On their own, with the older children leading, they have started fishing often.

We are mostly bystanders in awe of their determination.

They are learning so much.

The other night they were in the garage cleaning their fish 

while watching a tutorial on a phone.

Dad has been willing to help fry up the catch!

They are quickly learning to recognize the many different fish in our local river...

white perch, white bass, small mouth bass, channel catfish and carp.

It's one of the few child-lead hobbies to capture our family.

They are from a long line of avid fishermen so it must be in the genes!

And He's Four

Happy Birthday Christopher!

He had been practicing getting that fourth finger untucked.

He had a great day from start to finish!

His only birthday wish was for a scooter all his own.

Grandma and Grandpa surprised him with this adoreable frog umbrella.
Praying for rain!

His older siblings took turns from their school work 

so that he would have a playmate all day.

He was very adamant that his cake have hippos, turtles, alligators and ducks.

He carefully placed them on the double layer brownie cake.

 We love you so much!!!

Back to School

School takes on many forms for homeschooling.

You realize every moment is teachable and learning is happening all the time.

Our family especially enjoys the outdoors.

Hikes at our local nature center make everyone happy.

The kids always grab the camera when they see wildlife.

Our pets provide many teachable moments,

and they make great study buddies.

This year the younger children are studying Australia and Asia.

We have two in college, two in high school, one in junior high, two in elementary school and one enjoying the life of a pre-schooler.  Whew!

Field trips make learning fun!

They are growing so much.

Each year I am amazed at how much they learned over the summer 

when we weren't hitting the books.